The Anambra State Government has dismissed the story making the rounds that the Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, banned public preaching in the state.
The state Commissioner for Information, Dr. Law Mefor, in a press release to address the misconstrued reports surrounding the governor’s recent encounter with an itinerant preacher at Onitsha Market, said that Soludo only banned noise pollution.
The statement read in part, “The Governor’s remarks were misinterpreted as a ban on evangelism, whereas his focus was on noise pollution, which has been banned by an extant law on public health.
“To clarify, Governor Soludo drew attention to the Public Health Law 2006, which prohibits noise pollution and preaching in inappropriate places like markets using loudspeakers. The governor advised preachers to conduct their activities in churches or designated areas where people can gather and listen to the word without disrupting others’ activities.
“The issue at hand is noise pollution, not evangelism. “Noise pollution” is punishable under *Sections 8(1,4b) and 9(1,2) of the Public Health Laws of Anambra State, 2006.
“As a matter of precedence, a magistrate court in Nnewi made this law actionable against a church in 2019.” He advised the public to disregard any claims suggesting Governor Soludo has banned evangelism or public preaching in Anambra State but rather urged citizens to adhere to the Public Health Law and respect the rights of others.
